'Don't let the clear skies fool you.' Houston's widespread power ...

City of Houston officials urged residents to not grow complacent as the sun broke through the clouds Monday afternoon, illuminating a city trashed by Hurricane Beryl.

“Don’t let the clear skies fool you,” Mayor John Whitmire said. “We still have dangerous circumstances.”

Despite the winds and rain dying down throughout the afternoon, the threat of flooded roads, falling tree limbs and downed power lines still exists throughout much of the city, Whitmire said.

Across the Houston region, 2.2 million are without power, officials said.

Brad Tutunjian, an official with CounterPoint Energy, declined to give an estimate for power restoration in the city. About 10,000 linemen have been brought in from outside the region to assist with repairs, but an assessment of the damage must first be completed before the company is able to estimate the amount of time repairs will take, he said.

That massive number of outages will give rise to even more danger, officials said.

Heat and carbon monoxide poisoning were top of mind for Justin Wells, the Houston Fire Department executive assistant chief.

“Check on your neighbors,” Wells said. “Keep watch over your house and your loved ones.”

Shelters for those without power are expected to be opened by the city soon, once an assessment of Houston’s multiservice centers and other city-owned facilities is completed, officials said. A large number of the city’s multiservice centers and libraries are without power.

Whitmire declined to give an estimate on when the cooling centers would open.

Officials also warned of dangers on the roadways and encouraged residents to stay home for the remainder of Monday.

Hundreds of street lights across the city are not functioning, creating a risk of traffic accidents, officials said. There is also still standing water across many of the city’s roads.

“It’s going to take us a number of days and probably weeks to fully assess and repair all this damage,” Houston Public Works Chief Operating Officer Randy Macchi said.

Whitmire said he has asked for a federal disaster declaration for the storm. At the news conference, the mayor was flanked by U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and U.S. Rep. Al Green, D-Houston, who both said they would support the request for a disaster declaration.

A formal request for the declaration is expected to be sent by Acting Gov. Dan Patrick in the coming hours, Cruz said. After that point, it will be up to President Joe Biden to declare a federal disaster, uncorking federal aid for the region.